Lodestar Chapter 4
Chapter Four Henry "Hank" Lynn, the editor and publisher of the Lodestar Spectrum, the town's weekly newspaper, was grinning a Cheshire Cat grin as he looked at the headline he had just printed. The headline proclaimed that Virgil Rogers and Truett Hemphill had been the masterminds behind the rape and suicide of fourteen year old Jasmine Briscoe. He had absolutely no liking for Truett and was, like most of the town's population of 31,000, wanting to see him destroyed. "Truett Hemphill," he thought mercilessly, "when you and that Virgil Roberts are locked away for good, the citizens of Lodestar will sleep ever more peacefully." Outside the office, two blond girls, Veronica and Roxanne Randall, were watching the publisher, smiling. When they knew he was smiling THAT Cheshire Cat smile, they knew someone that they didn't like was doomed. Ronnie and Roxy, as they were better known as, were also known as the Randall Girls. They were the daughters of Harold and Joycelyn Randall, who owned an oil and gas exploration company based out of Abilene. They were always together, and were very close, due to their being fraternal twin sisters. They were sweet, and good natured, but were known for their very sharp tongues, when their friends or people they loved were hurt for any reason. Of the twins, Roxy is the one with a boyfriend. She dated Del Ray Collingsworth, a local rancher, who had been one of Alzada Castro's numerous paramours. When Roxy found out about Alzada nosing around Del Ray (who, to his credit, didn't like Alzada at all and rebuffed her advances) she nearly got into a brawl with the impudent Alzada at the Gold Star Bar and Grill. Ronnie didn't date very often, she played the field, but often was seen on the arm of Derek Swisher, a prominent attorney who worked in the prosecutor's office, at community events. Derek had once been seduced by Alzada, but he wisely threw her aside. His best friend, Aaron Armstrong, fared no better against her. After his disastrous affair, he moved to Houston, ashamed of what happened, and immediately went gay. Everyone understood what happened, given it was Alzada. Roxy and Del Ray had been together for a few years, having been brought together by Cyndi Potter, Roxy's long-time best friend, and a former girlfriend of Kevin Childress. Kevin's family, who ran the Silver Spur Western Store, was big at St. Agnes Catholic Church, and were leading figures in the Catholic community. "I'd hate to be Truett Hemphill, right now," Roxy said, a smile on her face, "his life is plenty over." "Same here," Ronnie said, "he's finished now! Nobody in this town will have anything to do with him. The Baptists have basically destroyed him. He is so corrupt!" Roxy grinned, "Hey sis, why the blanket?" she asked. Ronnie smiled, "Why not?" she said, "You never know when someone might need it." Roxy nodded, "That's for sure," she said. Meanwhile, on the opposite side of the Court House, attorney Chad Hutchinson was over by the smoking area, smoking a cigarette. He was stressed and quite tired after having to answer a bunch of stupid questions by a stuffy (and rather silly acting) defense attorney who had splashed on so much cologne that he smelled like a bad rancher! The 30 year old Chad cut quite a handsome figure. He was about 6'3", with wavy brown hair and very gentle blue eyes. His eyes were his most striking feature. Whenever he was angered, especially when he was grilling a highly uncooperative witness, his eyes could be as cold and hard as ice; but when he was around people he loved and cared about, those same eyes were very gentle and had pure love in them. He was dressed in a very handsome suit and tie that made him look more like a fashion model rather than one of Lodestar's most prominent attorneys. He stood over looking at the Square on the other side of the pillar he was near and looked at his watch. He wasn't needed in court after talking to that idiotic attorney. He sighed, and just looked over across the street. Taking another drag on his cigarette, he looked over at the main entrance to the Lodestar Bank and Trust, which was in his line of sight, and he was noticing a very distressing scene. Virgil Roberts was busy shoving and beating up another young man around by said entrance. Chad instantly recognized the person being victimized and his heart sank and nearly broke. Then his usually slow burning temper flared at who was being beaten up and that his desire to protect him came roaring to the surface. The victim was Albert Dawson. Albert was one of Chad's oldest and closest friends. In fact, some would say, Chad was perhaps Albert's only friend. The socially awkward Albert was however, well-liked (and in fact, was absolutely adored) by most of the families in Lodestar, but he had been a target of Virgil's bullying for many years even in school. Virgil always saw him as a perfect punching bag. What made Chad even angrier was when Albert was crying, Virgil was laughing and crowing arrogantly. Immediately, Chad crushed out his cigarette and ran across to the bank where he got the shaken Albert out of the way of Virgil. Chad's eyes were furious as he looked at Virgil. He gathered the emotionally shattered Albert gently in his arms and glared at Virgil. "JUST WHAT IN THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING, YOU PIECE OF SHIT?!" he roared. "WHAT THE HELL GIVES YOU THE RIGHT TO BEAT UP SOMEONE WHO IS HELPLESS IN SUCH A VILE MANNER FOR NO DAMNED REASON?!" Virgil looked smug, "Simple, you damned toad! He was in my way," he sniffed, "and nobody gets in the way of Virgil Roberts, least of all a piece of trash named Dawson!" Chad glared at Virgil, he wanted to belt Virgil so hard he would have put him into orbit. But he held his counsel. He couldn't have cared less about that arrogant turk; but his primary concern was for Albert. To him, Albert was the only one who mattered. He gently looked into his face. "Hey, Albs. Are you all right, buddy?" he asked softly, holding him close, "Hey, hey, hey. I'm here, Albs. I've got ya, buddy. I'll make sure he stays away from ya." Albert was crying so hard he couldn't even speak. Chad caressed his head and comforted him. Virgil was laughing himself silly, and Chad was furious at his callous treatment of Albert. Sarah Hale Hansford (her husband, Bryan, was the President of the bank who had seen the whole thing) and her brother, Quentin, who was along with his boyfriend, Brett Parmer, gently helped Albert up and get him over to Floyd's café, which was owned by Justin and Claire Floyd. Albert got very nervous as he looked at Chad. "Chad will be with us soon, pal," Quentin said gently to the silent Albert, sensing his nervousness and his fear. As Quentin was autistic himself, he knew how to deal with Albert and was able to help him out the best. "I know you've kind of shut down now, but I understand. Chad won't leave ya hanging, pal." Ronnie and Roxy came over to offer their help. They shot Virgil a deadly look. Chad gave Virgil a even more vicious look. "Listen to me right now, you disgusting piece of trash," Chad said angrily, "I am going to go over and see how my best friend is doing, and if I ever, and I do mean, EVER, see you or even remotely HEAR that you put your disgusting hands anywhere near that boy, I will personally make it my life's work to see you go to prison for the rest of your unnatural life! Bad enough you raped Jasmine Briscoe, now you beat up my closest friend. I am going to LOVE putting you away where you belong!" "Ya think so, Hutchinson?" Virgil scoffed, "Truett will make sure that won't happen!" That statement really set off Chad. Extremely livid, he grabbed Virgil by his shirt, and shook him as hard as he could. Watching from the Cafe's window, Ronnie was stunned. She had never seen Chad get so angry at someone. She knew he could get very protective about those he loved, and it was clear that Albert Dawson was someone he cared deeply about. Roxy was shocked too, despite her more volatile temper. The sisters held close to each other. "Shut your damned trap about Truett Hemphill!" he said savagely, "He's trash! You're trash! And I mean it. You keep your diseased mitts off Albert Dawson or I will make sure that you are prosecuted to the nth degree! Now, get outta my face! I don't want to see you around me again!" Chad shoved Virgil out of the way and he straightened his tie. He walked away from the vile Roberts. From inside the Café near the window, Sarah, Quentin, Brett, Ronnie and Roxy looked in awe at him. "I think Virgil might have finally messed with the wrong person," Sarah said quietly, "you don't mess with someone Chad Hutchinson cares about. Aside from his sister, Albert had always been his pet. You hurt Albert, you really piss off Chad." "Poor Albert," Quentin said softly, "poor guy. I can so understand what he's going through." Roxy smiled sympathetically, "Yeah, poor guy," she said, brushing a lock of his hair out of his face, "Albert didn't deserve to be beaten up by that slime Virgil." Ronnie looked at Chad as he strode towards the café. "Yeah," she said, "Chad and Albie were close from when we were all kids. I think he was the only one of all of us who really knew something was wrong with him." She had brought with her the blanket she had earlier. It was a soft pale pink blanket that had a beautiful flower on it, and she felt that its warmth would help. She wrapped it around Albert and he was calmed, but tears was still falling down his face. Roxy nodded. "Well," she said softly, "looks like someone DID need it after all. Are you going to take it back, Ron?" "No, Rox," Ronnie said, "I wouldn't do that to him. It comforts him and I think that is what is most important. It's his now. He needs it far more than I do." Chad then came into the Café, where Frieda Cottle and Claire Floyd were getting Albert to drink some broth and brought him a good meal. "You're going to be all right, honey," Frieda soothed, "Chad will straighten that snake out." "Frieda's right, sweetheart," Claire said, "we're all here for you, right now." Chad's heart went out to his best friend, and something else. Chad was falling in love with his long time best friend. He sat next to him, and to the amazement and joy of Claire, Frieda, Ronnie, Roxy, Q, Brett and Sarah, he put his arm around Albert, pulling him close and holding him gently. A tear fell down Albert's cheek and Chad wiped it away gently. Though Albert had emotionally shut down, a side effect of his PTSD/autism, he felt Chad's gentle hand and soft voice leading him out of the darkness and fear. He silently ate his dinner. Virgil was disgusted! He sneered at the group assembled at the Café, then snapped his fingers, his usual sign of dismissal, and walked off towards the office where Truett Hemphill had his financial advising business. He simply barged into the office, marching past the secretary and just entering Truett's office. A furious Truett looked up from his paperwork. Of late, he had become sick and tired of Virgil sticking his nose into his business. Virgil was getting too big and too overly egotistic for his britches, and everyone was just plain disgusted with Virgil and his prancing around bragging about the things he's done. "Now, let's get one thing straight, you imbecile! Whatever it was you just did, I don't want to hear about it," Truett snapped, before he could say a word, "in fact, I refuse to hear it. Besides, you've went and done it this time!" "What?" Virgil was scared, but only briefly, "What happened?" Truett threw the newspaper at him. "We've been exposed, our whole schemes have been exposed and the whole town knows what we've gone and done, you God-damned idiot," he screamed, "We're finished here, thanks to you and your idiotic arrogance! Look at this! Everything is in there. EVERYTHING! The story is spread all over Page One and it's all your fault! Virgil was thunderstruck. "But, I-I---!" he stammered. "Shut up!" Truett yelled, "It's all here in black and white! Henry Lynn did meticulous research! How you drugged Jasmine Briscoe with that poisoned Rohypnol, how we raped her, tied her down and beat her! Then you bragging and badgering her into a breakdown and leading her right straight up to her suicide! Not to mention all the crimes I committed against the Hales and my now exposed relationship with Jonathan Hale's wife! Everything is there, and the whole damned town knows it all now." "Couldn't we just lie?" Virgil tried weakly. His arrogant bravado coming back. "No, you imbecile!" Truett raged, "Everything is out now! Because you couldn't keep your damned mouth shut, we've showed our hand and we're sure to be run out of this town on a rail! Listen, Jeff Crosby is, as we speak, preparing to file manslaughter and rape charges against us! Alzada is by my side on this, but only barely! She's been lying to me about something, just what it is, I don't know. Now I've just come back from the church! I lost my position on the Board! Thanks to that stupid James Oldham, I'm no longer welcomed in the Baptist church or anywhere else in this town! He's now the Head of the church board, appointed by Rev. Lamb. The Hales left that church, thanks to that schism that I created, and now NOBODY in this town will have a good word to say about me! And that is completely YOUR fault." Virgil stammered, "But, Truett, I just thrashed that stupid nothing Albert Dawson in front of the bank!" he squawked, "That is something you like, isn't it?" Truett's rant stopped instantly. He looked at Virgil very coldly, "You did WHAT?!" he rasped. He was as furious as Chad Hutchinson was when he saw Albert beaten up. His blazing eyes burned right into Virgil, "You really couldn't have been THAT ridiculous, you asshole!" Virgil smiled arrogantly, preening around to Truett's disgust, "Yes. I did! I just trashed that damned Albert Dawson right in front of the bank!" he said, extremely proud of what he did, "and it was SO much fun to do too! In fact, I did it right out in full view of the public, in broad daylight. I had quite the captive and large audience!" Absolutely livid with rage, Truett grabbed a glass carafe, emptied of coffee, and threw it square at Virgil as hard as he could. The decanter shattered by his head. "You bastard!" he exploded violently, "You god-damned ignorant piece of shit! Have you completely and TOTALLY lost your mind?! You don't ever think do you?! You never learn!" Virgil was astonished, "What are you talking about?" he protested, "I just beat up someone who is far beneath you! I thought you'd be proud of that!" Truett glared at his now former associate, "Listen to me, you god-damned simpleton! It's bad enough that you had decided to beat up that poor lad in the first place, but in front of a whole bunch of witnesses, in broad daylight?! You just set yourself up for real trouble! That's stupid! No, that's just plain asinine! Then, you have the unbelievable gall to crow about it?!" Truett's eyes were spitting fire as he yelled at Virgil. "But I---!" Virgil stammered. "Shut up!" Truett yelled, "Just shut the fuck up, you arrogant prick! For the one and only time in your wasteful life, you will shut your fucking pie hole and listen to me! You had absolutely NO right to beat up on Albert Dawson! NONE! That boy is hands-off! He is under the same protection as Quentin Hale. Quentin is autistic and so is Albert. Besides, you know damned well those reprobate parents of his beat the shit out of him for most of his life, and that is not anything I would EVER wish on ANYONE! That boy is golden, just like Quentin Hale; and that means you do not mess with either one of them for ANY reason! You're lucky that Chad Hutchinson didn't finish your ass off, because I would have been right there encouraging him in beating the living tar out of you!" Virgil was angry, "How could you?!" he screamed, "since when do you have ANY sense of morals?!" "It's not just about morals," Truett snapped, "it's more like common sense, you jackass! Which is something you obviously are in short supply of! You are nothing more than an arrogant bully and a creep, and even worse than a thug! Beating up on a helpless abuse victim, a poor young man with PTSD who would emotionally shut down the minute someone slaps him!" Virgil scoffed, "Whatever!" Truett marched over to him and slammed him against the wall, he was so angry. "You shut your trap!" he spat furiously, "If you say 'whatever' one more time, I will bash your brains in! You disgust me! Hitting someone who has had to endure being hit every time he turned around for the most petty of reasons! You simply disgust me! I wash my hands of you once and for all! You're fired!" Virgil glared at him, "You can't fire me!" he exploded. Truett sneered at him, "Oh, is that so? I most certainly can, damn your ass!" he spat, "YOU are FIRED! Do you get me?! You are terminated! Get the hell out of my office and get the hell out of this town! And hear me clearly, Virgil Roberts, If I ever HEAR you touched Albert Dawson again for ANY reason, I will see to it that I help Chad get you locked up!" "Oh, really?! What you gonna do to me?" Virgil threatened, "You, Mr. Big-Bad-Big-Shot Hemphill? Think you're so damned high and mighty, do ya?! Well, you're not! You're nothing! Piece of shit you are, nobody ain't gonna believe a word outta your lyin' mouth! They'll believe me, good ol' Virgil Roberts!" Virgil's arrogance puffed up the more he ran off at the mouth, "No wonder none of the families in this whole town want anything to do with you, you embezzling bastard! Sure, you say you want to help Albert Dawson, but you really don't give a damn about him! You destroyed the Hale family, stole from the Hockleys; and much more than that! I am SURE that DA Crosby, would simply LOVE to hear the stories I have to tell about you!" Truett glared at him, "Ha!" he snapped, "You think people are gonna listen to YOU? A worthless, no-good egotistical thug?! You're sadly mistaken! Your word means much less than mine does, and mine isn't all that good anyway! And my opinion of Albert Dawson is the same as the majority in this town. He's a solid guy. A good person, always cheerful, always optimistic; always seeing the bright side of things in spite of his terrible life, he may be a bit socially awkward and a bit emotionally crippled, but hell's bells, who isn't?! All the time he grew up, nobody gave a damn about him, except the Hutchinsons in general and Chad in particular. If it hadn't been for Chad, I doubt that poor lad wouldn't have ever known what love is. That poor boy has had a rough time of it, getting beaten up every time he breathed wrong by those terrible parents of his, but despite it all he kept his chin up, and soldiered on. What you did to him made it a whole hell of a lot worse for him! This town loves him very dearly, even I do, as a friend, and you are a fool for beating him senseless. You would be well advised not to stand in my way!" Virgil stared him down, "You want war, Hemphill?" he sneered, "well, by God, you got one! You will rue the day you messed with Virgil Roberts!" Truett wasn't fazed, "Oh, please! Spare me your ridiculous histrionics, cretin! I've eaten people far lesser than you up and spat them out for breakfast," he said coldly, "and I always come back for more. And you're insignificant! Now, you hear this! As I said, Albert Dawson is a truly special person and he's off-limits to you. Everyone in this town loves him. Chad and his family just plain adore him more than anything, and I know the town doesn't care if I live or die, and personally, I can live with that, but I am not gonna let an arrogant piece of shit like you hurt that boy ever again." "Whatever, you washed-up old bastard!" Virgil sneered, "You can't take me out of the game without snaring yourself. You're screwed, you take me down, you take yourself down too! You're caught between a rock and a hard place!" Truett looked sickened, because he knew Virgil was right, but that wasn't his main concern. He couldn't have cared less if the town wanted him strung up, he deserved it he knew; but he wanted to make the arrogant Virgil learn a hard lesson. With that in mind, he knew that if he had to make amends to someone, he would make it to Albert Dawson. He would see to it that he was treated well. "You just wait, Roberts," Truett warned, "you don't KNOW what I can do to you! You may be right, and that's a great BIG maybe, and if you go down, I go down! But that will happen when it happens! And for the last time, you LEAVE ALBERT DAWSON ALONE! If you EVER touch him again, it won't be just Chad Hutchinson goin' out for your blood, I will be there too! And believe it, I'LL KILL YA!" "Dream on, you worthless piece of shit," Virgil yelled, "you're a loser! I don't care how rich you think you are, you're useless! Alzada agrees with me." Truett stared at him coldly, "What do you mean by that?!" Virgil gloated arrogantly. "You think Alzada Castro is loyal to you?" he laughed, "Wrong! She's been with ME! And that damned baby you think is yours? Well, it ain't! It's MINE! All the time she was banging you, she was thinking of me! You think we're your friends?! Don't be so stupid, we were laughing at you all the time, you washed-up old son of a bitch! You're nothing, you HAVE nothing, and you've lost everything! We used you like an old dishrag, and now you're useless. As such, we're throwing you away! A fitting end to a piece of crap like you!" Truett walked threateningly to him, "Now you listen, you worthless piece of shit," he said coldly, "You've done it now! You've pushed me over the brink! First you beat up a defenseless PTSD/autistic person in Albert Dawson, and then second of all, you take MY fiancée, and then have the balls to tell me that the child she is carrying is YOURS?! Not to mention, all the while, you two were sniggering at me behind my back and were all ready to knife me when my usefulness was at an end?! You two make me want to vomit! Now, I am giving you one chance to either walk out of that door, or I will grab your scrawny bony ass and throw you clean out of the nearest window! If you EVER come around me again, I will call the police on you for trespassing and harassment! Now, beat it! I never want to look at your ugly mug again!" Virgil slammed the door shut, snapped his fingers at his former friend in dismissal, and stormed out of the office. He then proceeded to give his secretary the finger (which she flung right back at him!) and then walked away. He had wanted to hurl a rock through the window, but that would have invited even more trouble, and he'd had enough of Lodestar, and Truett Hemphill especially, for one day. He turned onto South Commerce Street and walked all the way to his motel room that he had lived in since Lois threw him out. It was a rundown old flophouse out near the southern city limits, which wasn't too reputable. Alzada was waiting for him. He smiled and let her come in. It was exactly what he needed after this day had went so horribly wrong. He would enjoy her company, and his twenty-four pack of beer that he had in his fridge. He was going to get drunk and get some good sex from Alzada. And he didn't care anything about any of Truett's empty threats! Several hours later, it was evening, and Chad had brought Albert to his office after his lunch at the Café. He made sure he was all right, and even had his father give most of his court cases to other lawyers so he could ensure Albert was taken care of. During the rest of the day, Chad looked over some paperwork while Albert sat quietly, but every so often, Chad looked at him and gave him a reassuring smile and would walk over and hold him for a few minutes. At about eight, the two started off for Chad's apartment which was not far from Williams College's main gate. Albert was quiet, but he was still shaken in grief. He clung to Chad's hand all the way to his home. He had never had a hand to cling to in his life, especially since his parents had used him as a punching bag. Chad had him wrapped in the soft pink blanket that Ronnie had given him while at Floyd's. "It's all right, buddy," Chad soothed, his gentle blue eyes looking deep into his friend's shattered heart, "I'm here. You're gonna be protected. Nobody's ever gonna hurt my Albie. I promise you that, pal. I so love you, I always have." That much was true. Chad Hutchinson and Albert Dawson had always been very close friends even from a very early age. They had met in kindergarten after nasty Virgil's former friend, Paul Gaines, had kicked him in the stomach. Chad swooped over to protect him from Paul's nastiness. (As a result, Paul was kicked out of school and later died in a drug overdose, overseen by none other than Virgil!) It was like although Chad had countless other friends, he had always taken extra special care of Albert. The other kids in their class all loved him to bits. To them, he was their special pet. He was a great person, always had an optimistic outlook, he was quite funny, and was really sharp as a whip. He was always making top grades in school and was beloved by his classmates and teachers. However, what only a few close people knew was that, under the bright smile and sunny outlook, he was also the victim of vicious Child Abuse. His parents were exceedingly cruel and harsh, and chose to beat him for whatever reason. If he even breathed wrong, he would get the tar smacked out of him by means of a switch, a belt, a two-by-four or anything else his parents would get their hands on. They would also get their jollies by kicking him and punching him until he was near black and blue. At school, Albert had been embarrassed to dress for gym, for fear people would see his bruises, and at times, he would sit by himself, and cry, feeling so worthless. Only Chad, and also Michael Potter and Billy Bob Lipscomb knew the hurt that haunted him. One particular incident was so distasteful that it would cause the Child Protective services, called by Eric and Felicia Hutchinson, to get Albert out of that house of horrors once and for all. As it turned out, his waste of space father nearly bashed his head in with a baseball bat for not filling the salt shaker properly enough! His mother also viciously kicked him and threw him across the kitchen, just because! Soon after that altercation, the Dawsons were arrested, charged with a laundry list of crimes stemming from grievous child abuse to conspiracy to commit murder. They permanently lost their parental rights and were driven out of town on a rail and nobody ever spoke to them again. Nobody knew where the Dawsons moved to and nobody really cared. To Lodestar's mind, they were trash who savagely beat their own flesh and blood. By this time, Albert was left totally alone. That was the beginning of his autism/PTSD which had manifested after the near beating with the baseball bat. Sadly, because baseball bats are massive triggers for his PTSD, he stays away from baseball games. Not long after his parents had been driven out of town, Chad had Albert come home with him. Chad's mother, Felicia, was so horrified at the beatings he had received that she nearly erupted in anger. A tearful Felicia had gently taken him into the bathroom and got him cleaned up, giving him a nice warm bath and a warm robe to wear. Eric was furious at the bruising Albert had endured, and so was Chad. Jennifer too was upset. She then had an inspiration. She ran upstairs and brought down one of her dolls. It comforted Albert, who then felt safe enough to finally break down and cry. Chad came up to him and held him close. It bonded the two boys for life and from then on, Albert was always and forever considered a Hutchinson. The horrible abuse he received had left him very autistic and very much prone to emotionally shut down when he was beaten up. Similar to what happened after Virgil's thrashing. It didn't matter that Albert wasn't blood to the Hutchinsons, it only mattered that he needed someone to love him since his own parents never did. Eric and Felicia took him to their hearts; Chad loved him dearly, and Jennifer just adored him. Chad and Albert got into his apartment. He got Albert settled on his couch, and poured a Coca-Cola for him. A shaken Albert took it very gladly. Then, Chad sat down next to Albert and lit up a cigarette. He smoked quietly, while Albert finished his drink. Then he crushed his cigarette out, wrapped his arms around Albert, and held him close rocking him as gently as possible. Albert, finally safe, broke down in tears and sobbed in his friend's arms. "That's right, baby. Just let it out. Just let it all come out, pal," Chad whispered softly, "It's all good, buddy. I'm here now. Chad's here, buddy. I've got you and I'm not going to let you go. You'll never be alone again, I'll see to that. I'm not going to let anyone hurt you ever again. I'm going to get some paperwork started and see to it that you become my ward. You need someone to help you and to care about you and love you and most especially protect you, and that someone is going to be me." For the rest of the night, Albert rested in Chad's arms. He was still quiet, but Chad kept him close as he rested on his lap. Chad had called his father and told him he wasn't coming into the office the next day. He had his Albert to take care of. "That's fine, Chad," Eric said, "I know Albie's all right with you. Where's he staying?" "We're at my apartment. He's staying with me from now on," Chad said, as he stroked Albert's hair, "I'm going to take him on as a ward. I called the apartment manager and I am having his things moved in here. He didn't have a lot, but what he has, is coming here. What he doesn't have, we'll get for him, right?" "Of course, Chad," Eric said, "you just let Mom and I know what we can do to help. We'll call Jenn and Drew, maybe they can help as well." That is a good idea, Dad," Chad said, "Any help from anyone will be greatly appreciated. What Virgil did to him today was the last straw for me. Albert's been abused most of his life, and I, for one, am sick and tired of it. He's never had anyone who loved him or protected him. Why else is he autistic and has PTSD? Because nobody gave a damn about him. Well there's gonna be someone who is gonna start giving a damn about him! And that someone is me! I'm going to protect him. It's clear his folks took pleasure in using him as a punching bag, and it stops right here and right now!" "Good idea, son," Eric said, "you'll do well, I am sure." Chad's blue eyes shined with love as he looked at his Albert, who had fallen asleep in his arms, "Yes, Dad," he said, "I will, and I aim to!" As Chad quietly hung up the phone, he led Albie to his room, and got him into bed. Albert fell asleep as soon as he hit the pillow, still holding the pink blanket. Chad got in bed, and held him close all through the night. Nobody's ever gonna hurt you again, my Albie, he thought, and that Virgil Roberts just made one hell of an enemy in me. He'd best know that if he ever tries it again, there will be hell to pay! Chad then fell asleep, with Albert safely in his arms. Category:Lodestar Episodes